Online sports betting Archives

April 8, 2024

Belgium report warns of impact of over-regulation on channelisation

A report from Belgium-based operator Gaming1 has highlighted concerns over the effect of over-regulation on channelisation.

On 1 July 2023, Belgium introduced a near total ban on gambling advertising. This was after a consortium of sports teams and gaming operators were defeated in a last-ditch legal bid challenging the royal decree.

The ban faced backlash, with Belgium gambling trade body Bago highlighting the government’s decision to act against the advice of the country’s Gambling Commission when imposing the ban.

Gaming1’s report has now outlined the impact of the royal decree on channelisation towards legal operators in Belgium.

Gaming1 pointed to surveys conducted by Nepa in 2023. The studies found a 6% rise in online players using an illegal website in the past three months following the royal decree, as well as a 4% increase on deposits made on illegal gaming websites.

In its report, Gaming1 highlighted the results of two major studies. The first from the Belgian Gaming Co..

April 8, 2024

Legalising sports betting in Minnesota just got a lot trickier

The path to legal sports betting in Minnesota got a whole lot more complicated last week when the state racing commission gave its blessing for historical horse racing and several new gambling bills were filed.

Since the start of the session, Senator Matt Klein and Representative Zack Stephenson have been shepherding their state-wide, online mobile bills through the state’s long committee process. Stephenson brokered a deal between the tribes and charitable gaming to take one long-standing barrier to legal sports betting in Minnesota out of the way.

And then came 1 April when Minnesota’s horse racing commission voted to allow historical horse racing at horse tracks. Some say this is a violation of the state’s exclusivity agreement with the tribes and others say is outright illegal. The machines look similar to slot machines and in most jurisdictions are considered games of chance. This is also an area for which the tribes have exclusivity.

Whatever the situation, the decision has ..

April 8, 2024

New York sports betting handle hits $19.64bn in FY23

Players in New York spent $19.64bn (£15.55bn/€18.13bn) betting on sports online during the Empire State’s 2023 financial year, while revenue reached $1.76bn.

Total wagers for the 12 months to 31 March 2023 were 19.8% higher than $16.40bn in New York in FY22. It is also the highest yearly online sports betting spend of any regulated state in the US.

In terms of gross gaming revenue, this was up 20.6% year-on-year and another US record. New York only opened its legal online sports betting market in January 2022, with FY23 only the second full year of regulation.

As it did in year one, Flutter Entertainment-owned FanDuel continues to lead the New York market. During FY23, FanDuel processed $8.10bn in online wagers and generated $845.8m in revenue.

DraftKings remained second with $619.6m in revenue from $7.02bn in bets. Placing third was Caesars with revenue of $140.4m and a $2.03bn handle.

BetMGM was the only other operator to process more than $1.00bn in wagers during the year, wit..

April 5, 2024

State of the Union: A look at the week that was in North America

Welcome to iGB's State of the Union, a look at the biggest North American sports betting stories we've covered over the week and briefs on others we found interesting.

Queens casino controversial among politicians

Businessman Steve Cohen’s plan to build a casino in Queens adjacent to the Mets’ Citi Field earlier this week got the endorsement of a city councilman, but a state senator said Cohen has not been “open and transparent”, according to the New York Post.

State Senator Jessica Ramos, who appears to back a Genting Resorts World project, took issue with Cohen’s lobbying strategy. Any downstate casino will need legislative approval in Albany. Cohen is partnered with Hard Rock in his proposed venture.

Queens Councilman Francisco Moya told the NYP that “If we fail to seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, we ensure that the area around Citi Field remains underutilised parking lots for the foreseeable future; and we permanently stymie the future growth potential of Q..

April 4, 2024

US federal government asks for second extension in Florida wagering case

On Thursday (4 April) US solicitor general, Elizabeth Prelogar, requested a second extension to file its response in the US Supreme Court West Flagler and Associates versus Haaland case that could change the status of legal sports betting in Florida.

In the filing, Prelogar writes that the “extension is necessary because the attorneys with principal responsibility for final preparation of the government’s response have been heavily engaged with the press of other matters before the court.”

Prelogar is requesting an extension in the Florida case until 12 May and notes the attorneys for West Flagler (WFA) do not object to the request. The Department of Justice, on behalf of the US Department of the Interior, was initially ordered to reply to WFA’s filing by 12 February, but filed for an extension until 12 April that SCOTUS granted.

WFA filed its writ of certiorari on 8 February, about seven months after a lower court overturned a previous ruling that allowed the Seminole tribe to go..

April 4, 2024

Ontario market growing two years on, shifting focus to consumer protections

In the two years since single-event wagering was legalised in Ontario, Canada, one thing has become clear: consumers are sick of gambling ads. The most recent proof of that is a Maru Public Opinion poll, taken 7-8 February, of 1,534 Canadians who are also Maru Public Opinion panelists.

Of those surveyed, 59 percent said they favour a total ban on wagering advertising. Most also believe that operators are not acting responsibly and that there should be more government regulation.

While polls are often designed and taken to get a certain result, and a significant percentage of those polled by Maru were in the over-55 category, the sentiment matches the hue and cry that has been echoing through Canada since wagering went live on 4 April 2022. Since its launch, televised hockey games were flooded with advertisements for sportsbooks and have been since.

There is similar sentiment in some parts of the US. In 2023, for example, Senator Paul Tonko proposed a federal wagering advertising ..

April 3, 2024

Tracks and tribes key sticking points in Minnesota wagering debate

Minnesota representative, Zack Stephenson, brought his legal online sports betting bill to the House Commerce Finance and Policy Committee on 3 April, but was met with pushback from committee members.

Committee members pushed back on issues including horse racetracks and how to structure a deal for the state’s 11 tribes.

There was no vote, and HF 2000 is currently sitting in the House Taxes Committee awaiting a vote there. But Stephenson, who is the chair of the Commerce Finance and Policy Committee, said he wanted to have an informational session about Minnesota wagering legislation with his committee as the bill moves forward.

Stephenson’s bill, which was carried over from last session, has been heavily amended, including doubling the tax rate and adding in daily fantasy sports regulation. Stephenson also brokered a deal between the state’s charitable gaming foundations and the tribes that is reflected in the latest version of the bill.

But Commerce Finance and Policy Committe..

April 3, 2024

Rhode Island sports betting revenue plummets 42% in February

Rhode Island saw a 42% drop in sports betting revenue for February, the month before igaming went live in the state.

Rhode Island reported $2.9m (£2.3m/€2.7m) in sports betting revenue for February, significantly down on the $5m accumulated in January. February’s revenue also fell 19.4% short of the same month last year, when the Ocean State accumulated $3.6m in revenue.

The state’s February handle also declined by 13.4%, down to $38.8m from $44.8m in January. Additionally, Rhode Island’s handle dropped year-on-year, with February’s total 10% behind the $43.1m accepted in bets in the same month last year.

Online continues to command the most interest with $30.4m in handle, 78.4% of the total. Online operators paid out $30m in winnings.

Of the $8.4m in bets received by retail, Twin River led the way with $6m, while Tiverton Casino took $2.4m in wagers. Despite the large disparity in handle, Tiverton Casino actually accumulated more revenue, generating $288,000 to Twin River’s $206,0..

April 3, 2024

Ukraine considers ban on online gambling for armed forces

Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, is to consider restricting online gambling for the armed forces following a petition from a Ukrainian soldier.

The plan for restrictions was announced during the Ukraine president’s evening address to the country’s citizens on 2 April.

The government is now preparing conditions to “tighten control” over the online gambling industry in the country to “help protect the interests of society”.

The announcement follows a petition demanding restrictions on online gambling for Ukrainian soldiers, launched on 29 March.

The petition, published on the website of the president’s office last week, collected a total of 26,041 signatures within hours of it being launched. Any petition with 25,000 signatories automatically requires presidential consideration.

The petition to restrict Ukraine online gambling

The petition, launched by a solider of the 59th brigade, Pavlo Petrychenko, aims to draw attention “to the harm that the gambling business ..

April 3, 2024

Mississippi senate committee keeps online sports betting bill alive

On 2 April, Mississippi's senate gaming committee held a special two-minute meeting in an effort to keep a statewide mobile sports betting bill alive with about a month left in the legislative session.

During the meeting, committee chairman David Blount said that he had been told that “people have been talking” about the Mississippi sports betting bill HB 774 in an effort to reach consensus. He added that “if people are talking, that is a good thing and we want to let them continue to do that.”

The committee adopted a strike-all bill, which in this case updates the bill with codes used in the house. While it does not change any of the text, it does keep the online sports betting bill alive. The state legislature is scheduled to be in session until 5 May and HB 774 passed the house on 1 February. It was transmitted to the senate on 5 February and then assigned to the gaming committee on 27 February.

Tuesday was the final day for a committee to pass out a bill that did not orig..

April 2, 2024

Nearly $200m wagered in first week of North Carolina sports betting

The Tar Heel State has released its first week's sports betting figures, with a total handle already nearing a quarter of a billion dollars.

The North Carolina State Lottery Commission has plenty of reasons to celebrate with over $198m wagered in the first week of sports betting, starting on Monday 11 March.

Detailed numbers have been released by the Commission’s first sports betting report. In total, payouts amounted to $142m from the $198m wagered, with $43m in gross wagering revenue.

A further breakdown revealed that $24m was wagered on the market’s first day. Of that total, $11m was paid out in gross wagering revenue. North Carolina is subject to an 18% tax rate on gross gaming revenue.

Which operators are live in North Carolina?

So far, the North Carolina State Lottery Commission has awarded eight interactive sports wagering licences to operators.

FanDuel, Caesars Entertainment, DraftKings, Fanatics, Bet365, BetMGM, ESPN Bet and Underdog have all secured licences.
..

April 2, 2024

Ohio sports betting revenue down by 41.4% despite Super Bowl

Sports betting revenue in Ohio fell by over 40% in February, despite the Super Bowl early in the month.

Sports betting revenue dropped 41.4% to $66.3m (£52.8m/€61.5m) in February from January’s figure of $113.1m. February’s revenue was also 18.5% down year-on-year, with Ohio accumulating $81.3m in the same month last year, which was the second month of its sports betting market launching.

Ohio also saw a 17.2% decrease in handle, from $810.4m in January to $671.1m in February. However, February’s handle amount was 5% more than the $639m in bets received in the same month last year.

$599.7m was paid out in winnings during February, while $28.3m was written off as promotions. Taxable revenue amounted to $67.6m.

Ohio’s online sports betting sector continues to dominate the market. It was responsible for $66.4m in revenue and $657.7m in handle, the latter of which accounts for 98% of the monthly total. Retail actually finished in the red for the month, losing $122,288 during February.
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Tag: Online sports betting